Preview - Great Protection Head Flashlight

LED Flashlights – General Info 18650 Flashlights
1

Direct quote title description for this flashlight from Manafont:

"T6 1 Mode LED Flashlight with Great Protection Head - Black (3*AAA/1*18650)"

And, another direct quote:

"features great constructed head for great protection"

It came with a 3 x AAA magazine and a white, loose fitting sleeve for an 18650. It's a single mode T6 with a smooth rotary tail cap switch. The cap can be rotated off completely or to just past off and it then becomes a momentary on with a press.

It is extremely well made; very thick.

The acrylic (I think it's acrylic) "lens" is 8mm thick and scratches very easily. A paper towel will leave fine scratches.

It arrived tightly packed in a remarkable amount of bubble wrap and this lens protection film applied over a bunch of dust and hair.

With an unprotected Tenergy 18650 (2600mAh) it pulls a steady 2.45 amps and it is pretty dang bright.

Below beam shots were taken with a 1/4 second shutter speed @ f2.7.

Cyclone C88 with an unprotected King Kong 26650.

Great Protection Head Flashlight with an unprotected Tenergy 18650.

Just a reminder; the Cyclone is a heavy hitter, pulling 2.80 amps from a 26650 battery.

The SMO reflector on this GPHF is relatively deep, like a Masterpiece Pro 1 but it is only 32mm across. It throws like all get-out and has a tight center spot. It has a beautiful beam pattern and the only thing slightly green is the corona.

Here's a couple of ceiling bounce shots:

GPHF

Cylone

They look like close performers in the outside beam shots but a ceiling bounce tells the tale; the Cyclone beats it a little.

I'm actually thrilled with this light, that Manafont does not call a dive light. And maybe it's not a dive light but if it is, I'm fascinated with it at $26.66. I'm not a diver but to me, a dive light that works is a mission critical piece of hardware that requires a lot more consideration than a casual $26 order on the internet.

Foy gets bored sometimes and this fine little GPHF was exactly what I needed. Very, very interesting torch. Full review coming.

Foy

2

Nice preview foy,this looks like a brick house build on this one.Massive heatsink too,it's just begging to have an overdriven xml in it.Some retailers pass this off as a diving light but I'm with foy on this one,doubtful.Thanks foy,looking forward to the full review and I'm curious to see if it's as robust as it seems.

3

Well, whatever it is, it also joins a growing list of lights that rock Foy's world that everybody else could care less about.

I do remain curious, what is the purpose of this light? In fact, I should probably change the thread title. This confirms my suspicion that Foy is the only person that buys a flashlight on the sole purpose of not knowing its sole purpose.

What is this light for? Manafont offered this light for sale, hoping xxx? would buy it so they could use it to xxx?

lotsofsoleFoy

4

I think DX calls it a diving light……cool light though.

5

I think the next thing you need, is another set of shelves.

Very odd light, unless you’re a diver I guess. Take it to the pool and see what it does. :wink:

6

Foy, I’ve always loved the looks of this light and wanted to try it but I’ve always read it has an XP-G in it. Is it that or is it an XM-L?

The design is a diving one and it is modeled after the light that caused a great stink when the man who designed the original had it stolen by the company he worked with. There was even a thread a while back where the company sent one to someone here to review it and they passed out of lack of respect. Anyway, this light is a clone of that design. It is very much a diving light and super beefy with the best following potential I’ve seen yet.

I still want to get one and maybe have a glass lens made to replace the acrylic. That and drop in an over driven XM-L. :slight_smile:

7

I just looked it up on manafont and see it is xm-l. Very sweet! Their price is good too. Tmart wants $37 for it.

8

Thanks Foy!!

That one has always caught my attention. If that plastic lens scratches that easily though I am going to pass on it. Thats a deal breaker in my book. A lot of sites are calling it a dive light, and I too think it was one of the designs that was stolen from its designer and copy-cloned (or close to it) by his over-seas fabrication house a little while ago.

9

Yes, that's the one. https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/72551

I'm surprised by the acrylic lens too, especially on a dive light. I suppose in the original iteration this was supposed to be a scratch resistant hardened plastic and this is a way to cost cut.

10

Damn.

I remember that thread. I even posted in it I think. If I had known that, I would not have bought it. Should have done my research first. Not a big deal I guess, just think it's wrong that the creator is not compensated some how.

The scratches are very, very fine and you can't see them unless you turn the light on and look at it on an angle. It is very well made and bright as hell.

wrongdecisionFoy

11

Don't beat yourself up about it. The thieves were Xeccon lights. This is just your standard clone. Bound to happen. And I think there's a way to polish out scratches in acrylic plastic. I just have to find it.

12

I like Meguiar’s plastic polish for shallow scratches, as it works well on speedo lenses.

Deeper gouges and scuffing can be generally remedied using any number of automobile headlight restoration techniques.

13

Wow another great review, thanks Foy

I an very intrigued by this light I really want a dive light. I am sure a clear adhesive sticker will fix the easily scratched plexi-glass lens issue.

14

Headlight lens polishing kit?

15

I bet Meguiar’s would do it. They're very fine. If I try to scratch it with my fingernail it won't scratch but a paper towel will leave tiny lines that can only be seen with the light on. They look like it were to continue, it might eventually become cloudy.

Like everything else; I'm probably making too big a deal of it.

Seriously; I'm being overly critical but it is a hard light to hate. I don't think you could hurt it if you drove a car over it. It's got to be the best nightstand duty light I've ever seen, head-standing on its hex-screws with light glowing from an 8mm thick lens. Just doesn't feel like a $26 torch. I'm going to have to grow some balls and take the lens off and see how they mounted the emitter, whatever that red thing is.

Thanks for the nice words,

Foy

16

Brasso works quite well.

17

Nice job Foy. l have no idea about acrylic lenses but on dvd's and cd's I use toothpaste and a soft cloth to polish out scratches.

Great protection head flashlight? Does this need a rubber on it for ultimate protection?

18

Foy,
Thanks for the review. I’ve had my eye on that torch for a while, and it’s much smaller than I thought. I really like the deep heat sink fins on the head and thought it would be great for heat dissipation given the small form factor. I may need to add this to my wish list.

19

I must say, I can see why somebody would want to copy it. It's kind of like a German car; its true virtues aren't known until you've spent some time using it. And of course as a dive light (if that's what it is) I'll never know how it performs.

Here's an open invitation: if there is a diver willing to use this light for me under real conditions, I'll send it to you. The only condition being your willingness/ability to communicate its performance, or lack thereof and promise to send it back. No restrictions on use. If it floods, it floods.

Hey, it's worth a shot.

Foy

20

With those bolt heads acting as standoffs I’m guessing it’s pretty difficult to scratch the lens if setting it down on a reasonably flat surface. Most scratches would probably come from the owner cleaning the lens. I’m going to have to get one of these. Thanks Foy! :stuck_out_tongue: